Life-span-development research on the neural base of relaxation effects by a physical exercise

现代社会的压力是导致各种疾病的主要原因之一。在本研究中，为了客观地评价应激反应，我们开发了一种新的系统，它结合了近红外光谱(NIRS)、心理测试以及自主神经系统和内分泌系统功能的评价技术。此外，利用该系统对中老年人体育锻炼的放松效果进行了评价，结果表明，即使是轻微的锻炼也有放松的效果。此外，这种温和的运动改善了工作记忆的表现，这与工作记忆任务中前额叶皮质活动的增加有关。我们建议将现有的应激监测系统与体育锻炼相结合，可以预防各种应激性疾病。

The stress in the modern society is one of the major causes of various diseases. In this study, in order to evaluate stress objectively, we have developed a new system, which employs near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), psychological tests and the techniques of evaluating the autonomic nervous system and endocrine system function. Furthermore, using this system, we evaluated the relaxation effect of the physical exercise in middle and old aged people, and revealed that even mild exercise had a relaxation effect. In addition, such mild exercise improved working memory performance associated with an increase of the prefrontal cortex activity to working memory tasks. We suggest that combination of the present stress monitoring system and physical exercise may prevent various stress-induced diseases.